Gibbston Valley Winery’s winning team continues to impress

28 May 2012

Gibbston Valley Winery’s winning team continues to impress

Renowned food and wine magazine ‘Dish’ has released the results of its inaugural Wine Panel tasting with two of Gibbston Valley Winery’s Pinot Noirs receiving accolades.

The Gibbston Valley Central Otago Pinot Noir 2010 has continued on its winning streak, receiving five stars from the panel and ranking third in the Top 10 Pinot Noirs list.

Recently the wine was recognised with a Pure Elite Gold at the 2011 Air New Zealand Wine Awards and a Blue Gold at the Sydney International Wine Competition.

Gibbston Valley Winery winemaker Christopher Keys said he was “very happy” to see the winemaking team rewarded with the latest accolade.

“We focus very hard on this wine, from the details in the vineyard to the individual ferments of different blocks, to separate barrel aging and the ultimate process of blending.

“It’s a team effort, with many people involved in its making. To see the judges note that it is crafted incredibly well, is recognition of the quality of their work,” he said.

Gibbston Valley Winery’s Gold River Pinot Noir 2011 was also recognised, receiving four stars from the Dish tasting panel.

Judges described the wine as ‘a very young wine oozing cherry and plum fruit’ and said it had great potential if the buyer was disciplined enough to put some away in the cellar.

“We love this wine as it shows the dimensions of Central Otago fruit,” said Mr Keys.

“This price point is a hotly-contested one for all Pinot Noir producers, not just from Central Otago. We’re really keen to impress at this price because we want to drink it too!

“Whilst being enjoyable to drink, it’s also a serious wine, and is testimony again to quality work in the vineyard and winery.”

Dish magazine’s inaugural Wine Panel tasting brought six judges to blind taste 182 Pinot Noirs from around New Zealand. Of those, 54 received a rating of 4 stars or more.

Mr Keys said the recognition from Dish magazine was yet another reason for the Gibbston Valley Winery team to feel pleased, after a dream run of summer and autumn weather has them predicting an outstanding 2012 vintage.

“We’re very happy with 2012’s quality, smaller bunches have given welcome intensity, and flavours are excellent,” said Mr Keys.

This year Gibbston Valley Winery is celebrating its 25th anniversary as the first commercial harvest of grapes in New Zealand’s Central Otago after picking 300 tonnes of intensely flavoured fruit.

Over the years, Gibbston Valley Winery has won more than 300 national and international awards, helping put the Central Otago wine region on the map.

Gibbston Valley Winery is home to a stunning winery restaurant, a cellar door wine tasting facility, New Zealand’s largest and innovative wine cave, available for wine tours, private functions, weddings and special occasions, the new Barrel Room for C&I functions and weddings, and a retail outlet.

www.gibbstonvalleynz.com/

ENDS

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